The challenge
Karol faced a classic modern classroom dilemma. Students' attention spans were being hijacked by smartphones - "The younger generations seem to have shorter attention spans. Students are always scrolling for something during lectures."
But the bigger problem? His smartest students were staying silent. "People are shy. They don't want to be laughed at in front of the whole group. So they are not very willing to answer questions." His classroom was full of brilliant minds that never spoke up.
The solution
Instead of fighting smartphones, Karol decided to put them to good use. "I wanted to have students use their mobile devices for something related to the lecture - so I used AhaSlides for ice breakers and to conduct quizzes and tests."
The game-changer was anonymous participation: "What is important is to engage them in an anonymous way. People are shy... They are smart, intelligent, but they are a bit shy - they don't have to use their real name."
Suddenly his quietest students became his most active participants. He also used the data to give students real-time feedback: "I do quizzes and polls to show the room if they are ready or not for the approaching exam... Showing the results on screen can help them manage their own preparation."
The result
Karol transformed phone distractions into learning engagement while giving every student a voice in his philosophy lectures.
"Don't fight against the mobile phone - use it." His approach turned potential classroom enemies into powerful learning allies.
"If they can do something to be involved in lecture, in exercise, in the class without being recognized as an individual, then it's a great benefit for them."
Key outcomes:
- Phones became learning tools instead of distractions
- Anonymous participation gave shy students a voice
- Real-time data revealed knowledge gaps and improved teaching decisions
- Students could gauge their own exam readiness through instant results
Professor Chrobak now uses AhaSlides for:
Interactive philosophy discussions - Anonymous polling lets shy students share complex thoughts
Real-time comprehension checks - Quizzes reveal knowledge gaps during lectures
Exam preparation feedback - Students see results instantly to gauge their readiness
Engaging ice breakers - Mobile-friendly activities that capture attention from the start
"You have to interrupt your lecturing if you want to really make it efficient. You have to change the mindset of your students... to make sure they don't fall asleep."
"It was important for me to have lots of testing options but not be too expensive. I buy it as an individual, not as an institution. The current price is quite acceptable."
